The emerging mobile edge computing ecosystem and value chain are complex with diverse technologies and a mounting number of companies – large and small – entering the MEC arena seemingly every day. Mobile edge computing is an up-and-coming advancement in the wireless industry that, according to the European Telecommunications Standards Institute, “provides IT and cloud-computing capabilities within the radio access network in close proximity to mobile subscribers.”
Filled with promise and benefits for mobile network operators and their enterprise and consumer subscribers, MEC is coming of age and moving into closer range in the U.S., Europe and other parts of the world. But, for the industry movement toward MEC to fully take hold, the edge of mobile networks needs to be optimized for greater flexibility and performance utilizing virtualized local content delivery and other technologies to essentially transform the RAN edge into an extension of a cloud.
For wireless operators, application developers and content providers, supplying popular content at the RAN edge offers a local service delivery platform with ultralow latency and enhanced bandwidth utilization. MEC and the RAN edge also allow direct access to real-time radio network information, such as subscriber location and cell load, which can be utilized to provide differentiated services and improve the quality of experience for mobile broadband customers.
MEC facilitates accelerated delivery of content, services and applications from the edge of mobile networks, closer to end-users at work, home or on the go. The mobile subscriber’s experience can be significantly improved through more efficient network and service operations, enhanced service quality, minimized data transit costs and reduced network congestion. In addition, some industry observers believe MEC will play a critical role as a market driver supporting the business case for making “5G” a reality, further improving the mobile customer experience for millions of subscribers around the globe.
Mobile network operators – thanks primarily to streaming video – are becoming the new information and entertainment broadcasting networks. Streaming video content is becoming richer and richer and creating bandwidth-intensive data streams because of higher resolution content production and screens, more user interactivity and other factors changing consumer consumption habits.
For streaming video and other over-the-top content distributed via the Internet, close proximity to popular and dynamic live online gaming, sporting events, movies, TV shows and other information and entertainment powers faster, broadcast-quality local content delivery. Speedy local delivery means happier mobile subscribers and new opportunities for mobile operators, OTT content delivery providers, software vendors and others to augment their existing business models or create new ones, while helping them to better monetize the mobile broadband experience.
The need for widespread adoption of MEC capabilities has arrived, but comes with standardization, regulatory and industry collaboration challenges that have to be addressed to bring it to full maturity. But there’s no denying the need for MEC and local content delivery speed. The Conviva 2015 viewer experience report revealed that 28.8% of all Internet streams in 2014 experienced buffering issues while 58.4% suffered from degraded video resolution, with both metrics deteriorating as compared to 2013.
To be truly effective, the most popular content must be brought closer to end-subscribers and delivered locally. A local delivery approach offloads content from the Internet, separate clouds and even the network core to ensure a better QoE with little or no buffering, while providing support for high video resolution and enabling significant cost savings for network operators.
Peer-to-peer video, Snapchat, WhatsApp, Skype and other upstream applications also impact MEC and mobile video delivery because not only is content being downloaded to mobile devices at exponentially high rates, but more content is being uploaded as well. The rapid growth of social media and viral content also adds to the increasing burden being placed on upstream network capabilities.
Consequently, mobile network operators should think about shifting the way they’re building and supplementing their network infrastructures, particularly at the last-mile broadband access level, so both downstream and increasing upstream demand from mobile end-users can be met with superior QoE. Moreover, with network functions virtualization and the separation of service functions between the network edge and core, operators need to focus on new software architectures now mixed with networking considerations.
MEC has to provide network optimization benefits and savings today, while also being able to deliver edge-based capabilities seamlessly over both fixed and wireless networks. This is due to the increasing nature of nationwide fixed-mobile converged broadband networks. Essential ingredients for an edge-based content delivery network solution include automatic content recognition and caching, a QoE-optimized video playout engine and support for lawful interception, to name a few.
As MEC use cases spring to fruition they will progressively bring monetization benefits, allowing the market to better understand which edge-based applications will get mobile enterprise and consumer traction and which ones won’t.
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